Francesca Iacopi | |
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Occupation(s) | Engineer, researcher and academic |
Academic background | |
Education | M.Sc. Ph.D. M.A. |
Alma mater | La Sapienza University of Rome Katholieke Universiteit Leuven |
Academic work | |
Institutions | University of Technology Sydney |
Francesca Iacopi is an engineer,researcher and an academic. She specializes in materials and nanoelectronics engineering and is a professor at the University of Technology Sydney. She is a chief investigator of the ARC Centre of Excellence in Transformative Meta-Optical Systems,a Fellow of the Institution of Engineers Australia,and a senior member of Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. [1]
Iacopi has authored over 130 publications and holds 9 granted patents. Her selected research areas include Nanoelectronics,Semiconductors,2D Materials,Nanophotonics and Energy Storage. Her research has added to the ITRS roadmap of materials and processes for advanced semiconductor technologies regarding devices,interconnects,and packaging. [2]
Iacopi’s research contributions have earned her various awards including a Gold Award for Graduate Students (Materials Research Society) in 2003 and Global Innovation Award (TechConnect World) in 2014. [3] She has served as an advisory committee member to the Queensland State Government on Science and Innovation in 2015. Iacopi was appointed representative for the IEEE Electron Devices Society to the International Roadmap for Devices and Systems (IRDS) in 2019. She founded and was the inaugural chair of IEEE Electron Device Society Chapter in New South Wales in 2019. [4] She is an Elected Member of the IEEE Electron Devices Society Board of Governors. [5]
Following her high school degree at the Liceo Scientifico Augusto Righi in Bologna,Iacopi went on to complete her Master’s degree in Physics from La Sapienza University of Rome in 1996 and then moved to Belgium for her doctoral studies. She received her Ph.D. degree in Materials and Electrical Engineering from the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven in 2004,under the supervision of Karen Maex. Later,she also completed a Master’s of Arts in Cultural Anthropology and Development Studies from the same university in 2009. [6]
During her M.Sc. studies,Iacopi worked as a junior researcher at the Italian National Institute for Nuclear Physics from 1995 till 1998 and later moved to Belgium with a position at Vrije Universiteit Brussel in collaboration with CERN,Switzerland till 1999. [7] In the following decade,Iacopi joined the Inter-university Microelectronics Center in Leuven,Belgium,as a research scientist and later got promoted to senior scientist from 2006. During her term in IMEC,Iacopi researched on interconnects and nanotechnology. [8] Afterwards,she spent one year in Japan,where she was appointed Guest Associate Professor at the University of Tokyo,Kashiwa Campus,to study novel plasma processes. In 2010,she moved to USA and accepted an industrial position at Globalfoundries as a Manager of Customer Packaging Technology and directed the Chip-Package Interaction strategy for the company. Subsequently,Iacopi moved to Australia for a research position with Griffith University,where in 2012,she was awarded a Future Fellowship from the Australian Research Council. [9] During this period,she founded her own research group and invented a catalytic process to obtain epitaxial graphene from silicon carbide on silicon. In 2015,she became a member of Advance Queensland Panel of Experts for the Queensland Government. During this time,she served as an advisor to the Queensland Government on the Science and Innovation for the State. [10]
In 2016,Iacopi joined University of Technology Sydney and was appointed as Full Professor. She leads the Integrated Nanosystems Research Lab. In 2017,she served as Head of Discipline,Communications and Electronics for two years;in 2019,she founded and chaired the IEEE Electron Device Society Chapter in New South Wales,along with being appointed as Associate Investigator at the Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Future Low-Energy Electronics Technologies (FLEET). [11] In 2020,she was appointed as Chief Investigator for the Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Transformative Meta-Optical Systems. [12]
Iacopi’s notable research areas include Nanoelectronics,Semiconductors,2D Materials,Nanophotonics and Energy Storage. Iacopi’s earliest research focused on instrumentation for Medical Nuclear Imaging.
In late 1990s,she worked on the forward tracker portion of the Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS) detector. The underlying purpose of the research was the tracking of elementary particles through interaction of radiation with materials. In a report about the tests of CMS microstrip gas chamber (MSGC) modules at PSI,Iacopi and her colleagues conducted the CMS experiment and tested two CMS MSGC that were similar to the barrel of the tracker,using a high intensity beam. The inner layer of MSGC in CMS proved to be stable in terms of voltage,thus rendering the experiment successful. [13] However,shortly after,a decision was made to change the technology for the CMS tracker to silicon detectors. In 1999,Iacopi started working at one of the largest independent R&D centers for semiconductors (IMEC) and focused on ultra-low-k/Highly porous dielectrics for on-chip interconnects. She is author of several seminal works in this area,which also led to technological implementation in the semiconductor industry. Iacopi authored an article about the problems with the structural stability of ultra-low-k-based interconnects and points that relaxation in ultra-low-k-based interconnect structures,either due to adhesion failure or by porous dielectrics compliance,can prove to be damaging in the interconnects. She proposed solutions to prevent the relaxation by either mechanism. She also defined the parameters required to generate well-grounded quantitative predictions. [14] Her research at IMEC highlighted the issue of uncontrolled diffusion of species in the dielectric pores,and directed the slowing of the projection for the industrial uptake of ultra-low-k dielectrics by the International Technology Roadmap for Semiconductors (ITRS). [15] Iacopi’s research focus then shifted to semiconductor compatible growth and integration of semiconductor nanowires for electronic applications like Tunnel -Field Effect Transistors (T-FETs). Her main contribution has been the identification of indium as potential replacement for gold in the seeded nanowire growth by the vapour-liquid-solid (VLS) method. In an article published in 2008,Iacopi presented the size related characteristics of Indium-seeded silicon nanowires. She bases her research on the fact that the growth structure of nanowires change considerably when the size is in tens of nanometers. Iacopi suggested a model to counter this issue. [16] In a similar article about the growth of silicon nanowires,Iacopi states that bottom-up manufacturing of nanowires for microelectronics is difficult as the characteristics of the wires would have to be controlled at the wafer -scale. She reviews the constraints for establishing a controlled process of a VLS growth of silicon nanowires and proposes suggestions for achieving the nanowire growth in a controlled manner. [17]
In early 2010s,Iacopi worked on the demonstration that cold plasmas can be an effective solution to slow down the diffusion of reactive species into porous media. She wrote an article in 2011 about the cryogenic plasmas and nanoporous materials. Through her research,Iacopi demonstrated that by processing plasma at cryogenic temperatures,the diffusion of plasma into nanoporous materials can be considerably suppressed. She further demonstrates that this suppression is controlled by reaction factors,radical recombination and sticking coefficient. [18] While working at Griffith University,Iacopi invented a direct and selective process for the wafer-scale synthesis of graphene on silicon,with applications in integrated micro technologies,including nanophotonics,bio-compatible sensing,and energy storage. Iacopi wrote an article about graphene growth with a nickel-copper alloy as catalyst. She obtained a few-layers graphene by a solid-source growth method with nickel-copper alloy as a mediator onto silicon carbide on silicon. It was found that this was the most suitable method of obtaining large-scale epitaxial graphene on silicon carbide on silicon. Iacopi describes the procedure for graphene synthesis in the article and also discusses the key characteristics of the process. [19] In a similar article in 2014 about the graphitized silicon carbide microbeams,Iacopi explains the proven procedures and methods to obtain graphene on silicon wafers in a site-selective way,while also discussing the limitations. This research points to the replacing conductive metal films in MEMS and NEMS devices with the carbon-nickel alloy method. [20] This invention earned her a Global Innovation Award from the TechConnect in 2014. Because of her research contributions,Iacopi and her research has been cited in various announcements and press-releases. [8] In a follow-up to this research,she further proves the effectiveness of using the nickel-copper alloy for the production of large –scale epitaxial graphene on silicon with electrical conductivity comparable to graphene on silicon carbide wafers. [21] Her current research at the University of Technology Sydney focuses on graphene and other two-dimensional materials on silicon for More-than-Moore applications,and to enable novel materials and functionalities for miniaturized systems encompassing electronics,photonics,sensing and energy.
Chemical vapor deposition (CVD) is a vacuum deposition method used to produce high-quality,and high-performance,solid materials. The process is often used in the semiconductor industry to produce thin films.
MEMS is the technology of microscopic devices incorporating both electronic and moving parts. MEMS are made up of components between 1 and 100 micrometres in size,and MEMS devices generally range in size from 20 micrometres to a millimetre,although components arranged in arrays can be more than 1000 mm2. They usually consist of a central unit that processes data and several components that interact with the surroundings.
Semiconductor device fabrication is the process used to manufacture semiconductor devices,typically integrated circuits (ICs) such as computer processors,microcontrollers,and memory chips. It is a multiple-step photolithographic and physico-chemical process during which electronic circuits are gradually created on a wafer,typically made of pure single-crystal semiconducting material. Silicon is almost always used,but various compound semiconductors are used for specialized applications.
A semiconductor device is an electronic component that relies on the electronic properties of a semiconductor material for its function. Its conductivity lies between conductors and insulators. Semiconductor devices have replaced vacuum tubes in most applications. They conduct electric current in the solid state,rather than as free electrons across a vacuum or as free electrons and ions through an ionized gas.
Gallium arsenide (GaAs) is a III-V direct band gap semiconductor with a zinc blende crystal structure.
A thin-film transistor (TFT) is a special type of field-effect transistor (FET) where the transistor is made by thin film deposition. TFTs are grown on a supporting substrate,such as glass. This differs from the conventional bulk metal oxide field effect transistor (MOSFET),where the semiconductor material typically is the substrate,such as a silicon wafer. The traditional application of TFTs is in TFT liquid-crystal displays.
Silicon carbide (SiC),also known as carborundum,is a hard chemical compound containing silicon and carbon. A semiconductor,it occurs in nature as the extremely rare mineral moissanite,but has been mass-produced as a powder and crystal since 1893 for use as an abrasive. Grains of silicon carbide can be bonded together by sintering to form very hard ceramics that are widely used in applications requiring high endurance,such as car brakes,car clutches and ceramic plates in bulletproof vests. Large single crystals of silicon carbide can be grown by the Lely method and they can be cut into gems known as synthetic moissanite.
Epitaxy refers to a type of crystal growth or material deposition in which new crystalline layers are formed with one or more well-defined orientations with respect to the crystalline seed layer. The deposited crystalline film is called an epitaxial film or epitaxial layer. The relative orientation(s) of the epitaxial layer to the seed layer is defined in terms of the orientation of the crystal lattice of each material. For most epitaxial growths,the new layer is usually crystalline and each crystallographic domain of the overlayer must have a well-defined orientation relative to the substrate crystal structure. Epitaxy can involve single-crystal structures,although grain-to-grain epitaxy has been observed in granular films. For most technological applications,single-domain epitaxy,which is the growth of an overlayer crystal with one well-defined orientation with respect to the substrate crystal,is preferred. Epitaxy can also play an important role while growing superlattice structures.
In semiconductor manufacturing,a low-κ is a material with a small relative dielectric constant relative to silicon dioxide. Low-κdielectric material implementation is one of several strategies used to allow continued scaling of microelectronic devices,colloquially referred to as extending Moore's law. In digital circuits,insulating dielectrics separate the conducting parts from one another. As components have scaled and transistors have gotten closer together,the insulating dielectrics have thinned to the point where charge build up and crosstalk adversely affect the performance of the device. Replacing the silicon dioxide with a low-κdielectric of the same thickness reduces parasitic capacitance,enabling faster switching speeds and lower heat dissipation. In conversation such materials may be referred to as "low-k" rather than "low-κ" (low-kappa).
Dry etching refers to the removal of material,typically a masked pattern of semiconductor material,by exposing the material to a bombardment of ions that dislodge portions of the material from the exposed surface. A common type of dry etching is reactive-ion etching. Unlike with many of the wet chemical etchants used in wet etching,the dry etching process typically etches directionally or anisotropically.
Lam Research Corporation is an American supplier of wafer-fabrication equipment and related services to the semiconductor industry. Its products are used primarily in front-end wafer processing,which involves the steps that create the active components of semiconductor devices and their wiring (interconnects). The company also builds equipment for back-end wafer-level packaging (WLP) and for related manufacturing markets such as for microelectromechanical systems (MEMS).
A hybrid silicon laser is a semiconductor laser fabricated from both silicon and group III-V semiconductor materials. The hybrid silicon laser was developed to address the lack of a silicon laser to enable fabrication of low-cost,mass-producible silicon optical devices. The hybrid approach takes advantage of the light-emitting properties of III-V semiconductor materials combined with the process maturity of silicon to fabricate electrically driven lasers on a silicon wafer that can be integrated with other silicon photonic devices.
A hardmask is a material used in semiconductor processing as an etch mask instead of a polymer or other organic "soft" resist material.
A micropipe,also called a micropore,microtube,capillary defect or pinhole defect,is a crystallographic defect in a single crystal substrate. Minimizing the presence of micropipes is important in semiconductor manufacturing,as their presence on a wafer can result in the failure of integrated circuits made from that wafer.
Selective area epitaxy is the local growth of epitaxial layer through a patterned amorphous dielectric mask (typically SiO2 or Si3N4) deposited on a semiconductor substrate. Semiconductor growth conditions are selected to ensure epitaxial growth on the exposed substrate,but not on the dielectric mask. SAE can be executed in various epitaxial growth methods such as molecular beam epitaxy (MBE),metalorganic vapour phase epitaxy (MOVPE) and chemical beam epitaxy (CBE). By SAE,semiconductor nanostructures such as quantum dots and nanowires can be grown to their designed places.
Carbide-derived carbon (CDC),also known as tunable nanoporous carbon,is the common term for carbon materials derived from carbide precursors,such as binary (e.g. SiC,TiC),or ternary carbides,also known as MAX phases (e.g.,Ti2AlC,Ti3SiC2). CDCs have also been derived from polymer-derived ceramics such as Si-O-C or Ti-C,and carbonitrides,such as Si-N-C. CDCs can occur in various structures,ranging from amorphous to crystalline carbon,from sp2- to sp3-bonded,and from highly porous to fully dense. Among others,the following carbon structures have been derived from carbide precursors:micro- and mesoporous carbon,amorphous carbon,carbon nanotubes,onion-like carbon,nanocrystalline diamond,graphene,and graphite. Among carbon materials,microporous CDCs exhibit some of the highest reported specific surface areas (up to more than 3000 m2/g). By varying the type of the precursor and the CDC synthesis conditions,microporous and mesoporous structures with controllable average pore size and pore size distributions can be produced. Depending on the precursor and the synthesis conditions,the average pore size control can be applied at sub-Angstrom accuracy. This ability to precisely tune the size and shapes of pores makes CDCs attractive for selective sorption and storage of liquids and gases (e.g.,hydrogen,methane,CO2) and the high electric conductivity and electrochemical stability allows these structures to be effectively implemented in electrical energy storage and capacitive water desalinization.
Crystalline silicon or (c-Si) is the crystalline forms of silicon,either polycrystalline silicon,or monocrystalline silicon. Crystalline silicon is the dominant semiconducting material used in photovoltaic technology for the production of solar cells. These cells are assembled into solar panels as part of a photovoltaic system to generate solar power from sunlight.
Potential graphene applications include lightweight,thin,and flexible electric/photonics circuits,solar cells,and various medical,chemical and industrial processes enhanced or enabled by the use of new graphene materials.
Epitaxial graphene growth on silicon carbide (SiC) by thermal decomposition is a method to produce large-scale few-layer graphene (FLG). Graphene is one of the most promising nanomaterials for the future because of its various characteristics,like strong stiffness and high electric and thermal conductivity. Still,reproducible production of Graphene is difficult,thus many different techniques have been developed. The main advantage of epitaxial graphene growth on silicon carbide over other techniques is to obtain graphene layers directly on a semiconducting or semi-insulating substrate which is commercially available.
Aristos Christou is an American engineer and scientist,academic professor and researcher. He is a Professor of Materials Science,Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Professor of Reliability Engineering at the University of Maryland.